Lockout over: NFL officially re-opens for business

The barriers of the NFL lockout officially ended on Friday morning when coaches welcomed players back into their facilities.

QB Jimmy Clausen of the Carolina Panthers and a gaggle of Washington Redskins -- including DT Lorenzo Alexander and K Graham Gano -- were among the first players to report just after the 8 a.m. ET launching point the NFL had set.

It's the first access players have had to team facilities and coaches since March 11, one day before the league imposed a lockout.

That work stoppage was invalidated by U.S. District Court Judge Susan Richard Nelson this week. Nelson also rejected the NFL's request to halt her ruling while it pursues an appeal.

Yet even as players return to facilities -- and begin workouts, interact with coaches and receive their new playbooks -- the threat exists that the lockout could be reimposed.

The NFL has asked the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals to reconsider applying a stay on Nelson's ruling. It could rule at any time, and if it grant's the NFL's request the doors to the facilities could once again close to players.

But for now, the NFL is open for business. It's still a limited re-opening, as free agency and player transactions aren't open yet.

Commissioner Roger Goodell said Friday he would hold a conference call later in the day to discuss how and when the league would open that process.

On Thursday, he said player transactions season would be opened in an orderly way that respects competitive balance questions. So it's unlikely to happen before the end of the NFL draft on Saturday.

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About Nate Davis

Nate Davis is a reporter, blogger and editor who's been at USA TODAY since 2000. He has covered the NFL since 2005. No, he did not play quarterback for Ball State. Davis' succession of our esteemed colleague Sean Leahy at The Huddle is considered a Brady-for-Bledsoe swap by most "insiders."More about Nate